I went to petsmart of all places to grab some ottos for my tank (full of diatoms or brown algae in prep for an algae eater)

I was surprised to find 3 twig catfsh for sale..... I remembered this forum and byron posting about his Farlowella's so I picked one up.

The tank is FULL of diatoms so I think we should be ok for food for at least a few weeks (I hope lol), also lots of live plants that are growing actively, and also only peaceful tank mates (cories and swords).

wondering if there is anything else I should be aware of with this species and keeping it healthy.

I am also thinking about going back and getting another one (hopefully of opposite sex if possible) just know they are hard to find and I think I lucked out finding them locally. Is there an easy way to sex them or is this impossible lol.

My ph is 7.4 and I have been reading profiles that say up to 8ph is ok and others that say only 7 or lower..?

It has only been an hour maybe and she has already cleaned half of the front glass in my 55 gallon....

lucky find indeed.

I know petsmart is not the greatest with the quality of fish they bring in so hopefully I will get lucky here.

aunt kymmie

12-16-2010 06:42 PM

Now I know why you refer to yourself as luckysarah! I've wanted one of these for a long time and I never find them where I live. And at Petsmart, of all places. :shock:

Byron

12-18-2010 11:45 AM

This fish, probably Farlowella vittata, is included in our fish profiles, click on the shaded name to go there.

On the waterparameters, these fish are usually wild caught so soft alightly acidic water is best. I don'tr know how well they adjust, but it is worth a try as you have them available locally. I would get all three, they do well in groups. I have 3 adults in my 90g, and now some fry maturing in smaller tanks.

luckysarah

12-18-2010 08:52 PM

I did get all 3...

Although I am pretty sure they are Farlowella acus (although hard to tell.. would like your opinion byron)

2 of them are very similar and the largest one is darker and has a slightly different nose shape (could be the opposite sex to the others or could be a different species.... he has not come close to the front of the tank for me to get a good look yet)

If you read our profile, it mentions that F. acus is very rarely if ever imported; and the fish named in the literature as F. acus is most probably actually F. vittata. The other species sometimes seen, F. gracilis, is different from F. vittata as shown in the drawing included in the profile.

I find the girth to be the best indicators of gender; females are much plumper around when viewed from above (or below) than males, even when not ready to spawn. I can never get a clear enough view of the rostrum on mine to notice the odontotes of the male.